Part 1: From Microbes to Mankind: Dr. Maria Rosado’s Journey into Anthropology

By Angelo Boujaoude, AnthroExplorer.com

What drives someone to shift from studying microscopic life to exploring human history and ancestral stories? For Dr. Maria Rosado, Professor of Anthropology at Rowan University, the answer began with a spark—one that started not in an archeological site, but in a microbiology lab.

“I was actually a microbiology major at Rutgers from ’77 to ’81,” Dr. Rosado told me when I visited her lab this week. “In my last year [of college], I took courses in human evolution and culture, and I thought—this really is much more what I wanted to pursue.”

Even though she couldn’t change her major at the time, Dr. Rosado found her way to anthropology through graduate school, combining her science background with a growing passion for the human story. “Anthropology started to answer questions about human variation, human diversity... why we’re all human, but look slightly different. I wanted to go deeper.”

She earned her Ph.D. in biological anthropology from Rutgers, studying everything from evolution to paleopathology. Her fascination wasn’t just with ancient disease—it was with understanding the full human condition. “Although microbiology is a lovely discipline—and I still love it—I needed to go to another level. The human level.”

A Shared Passion for the Past

Dr. Rosado also spoke about Professor Anna Getler, her former student and now colleague at Rowan. “She was a biology major here in 2014 when I met her. We didn’t have an anthropology major then, so she minored in it. But I took her to Chile with me, and she fell in love with it.”

Professor Getler went on to earn her master’s in forensic anthropology from Boston University, has worked for the Southern Regional Medical Examiner Office (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland Counties) and “will pursue certification as a forensic anthropologist,” Rosado explained. “I’m not [certified] because you need to be officially connected to the county for that. Because of our experience, we both share a deep passion for working with the past and honoring the stories of those who came before us.”

Dr. Rosado spoke with admiration about Professor Getler’s future at Rowan. “She’s going to be doing even more high-tech stuff than me, especially with our lab’s future facial reconstruction work. Once I retire, she’ll take the lead.”

Science, Faith, and Empathy

Raised in Roman Catholic schools, Dr. Rosado emphasized how anthropology gave her both scientific clarity and a deeper respect for human experience. “Science answered a whole host of questions for me,” she said. “But anthropology taught me how my experience as a human being affects others—and gave me the tools to understand people.”

She made it clear that for her, science and faith have always coexisted. “The nuns and priests at my schools taught me science. I’ve had a love for science for a very long time. And in anthropology, we study religions—not to convert or challenge, but to understand them as part of culture.”

This value of understanding rather than judging is something she instills in all her students. “We treat everyone with respect—no matter their beliefs, background, or experiences. Anthropology gives you that perspective. It gives you humility.”

Dr. Rosado’s story is a powerful reminder that anthropology isn’t just about studying the past. It’s about understanding the present, respecting others, and always remaining curious. As she told me, “The more differences we find, the more similar we are. That’s what anthropology teaches us.”

📌 Coming soon: Part 2 - 'We Respect the Dead': Ethics and Discovery in Cemetery Archaeology